By Carlos Jimenez (@carlosjimmenezz):
The San Jose State Spartans (2-4) lost 85-79 in a nail-biter to Bowling Green (6-2) to begin their four-game road trip.
SJSU’s lineup featured a different look as they elected to not to start forward Ryan Welage, the team’s leading scorer who is averaging 19.6 points a game.
Welage was subbed into the game early to counter the fast start of the Falcons as they jumped to an early 16-2 lead.
Five Spartans finished the game in double-digit scoring, with Welage posting 23 points to lead the team in scoring for the fifth time this season.
The Spartans led in every statistical category, except in free throw shooting where they were outshot 23-14.
After trailing by as much as 20 in the first half, the Spartans brought the score to within two, but couldn’t pull away victorious.
Ultimately, junior forward Oumar Barry fouling out with two minutes left in the game combined with several missed late-game free throws, the comeback bid fell short.
Turnovers were once again costly for the Spartans as they gave the ball up 17 times.
Despite the loss, rebounding continued to be a strength for the Spartans as they edged out the Falcons 49-32 to remain undefeated on the glass this season.
The Spartans will play their second game of this road trip on Dec. 2nd at Southern Illinois at 1pm.